The present invention relates to packaging systems for diluting concentrated materials to a preselected volume with a solvent for the concentrate in which a container for the diluted concentrate is packaged with a pre-measured quantity of the concentrate to be diluted, absorbed onto a carrier. The preselected volume of the solvent for the concentrate may then be added to the container with mixing to provide a predetermined level of dilution of the concentrate in the pre-selected volume of solvent. The present invention further relates to methods for diluting a concentrated material to a preselected volume with a solvent for the concentrate by disposing in a container for the diluted concentrate a pre-measured quantity of the concentrate absorbed on a carrier and then adding to the container the preselected volume of the solvent for the concentrate.
Many products are sold as liquid solutions consisting almost entirely of a solvent, such as water. A substantial reduction in shipping weight and consequential cost savings can be achieved by shipping the product in concentrated form essentially free of all, or nearly all, of the solvent.
Thus, a pre-measured quantity of a product concentrate may be added to a container for the final product to be diluted from the concentrate. The quantity of concentrated product and container size are selected so that a quantity of solvent for the concentrated product may be added to the container effective to dilute the concentrate to the desired strength of the final product. This is performed by the product consumer after shipment of the product and prior to use.
Products that are safe to use as dilute solutions may pose a chemical burn hazard to the skin and mucous membranes in concentrated form. This risk is posed, for example, by quaternary ammonium disinfectants. When a few milliliters of product concentrate are shipped in a container, there may or may not be a risk of chemical burns from concentrated product that may leak or spill out when opened or splash out of the container when water is added by the end-user to dilute the product to its final form. This hazard has prevented such products from being sold as concentrates in containers having sufficient internal volume to prepare the diluted final product by the addition of water. There remains a need for a safe means by which concentrated materials posing a hazard if splashed may be packaged in containers with a larger internal volume for dilution of the concentrate with solvent.